Socio-Economic Adjustment to Widowhood

This paper reports on a sample of 1551 persons, aged 65 and over, residing in small towns of Missouri in 1966. Subjects include 702 married persons who were compared with 849 widowed, classified by duration of widowhood. Comparisons point to the following similarities and differences: 1) Most small town elderly subsist on incomes below the poverty level; 2) Widowers incomes are about half the married incomes and widows incomes are about three-fourths the widowers incomes; 3) There is a tendency for widows to adjust to lower incomes by seeking employment, whereas widowers tend to reduce expenditures; 4) Residence with and dependence upon children tends to be “last resort” socio-economic adjustment; 5) Almost never do friends become a source of dependence.